Still looking for the latest and greatest movie, TV series or book to finish before the year is out? Why not ask the folks behind Hollywood’s favorite hits, what they’re reading and viewing this 2018. We reached out to the stars and creators behind the things you love (including Barry Jenkins, Steven Canals and Dan Levy) to find out a few of their favorite things from this past year.
Bradley Cooper (“A Star Is Born”)
Movie: “Roma,” “Green Book”
“I loved ‘Roma.’ I just saw ‘Green Book.’ I loved that. I haven’t seen much but those were great.”
Henry Golding (“Crazy Rich Asians”)
Movie: “Sicario: Day of the Soldado”
“‘Sicario 1’ was phenomenal. ‘Sicario 2’ was even better. Benicio Del Toro can do no wrong in my eyes.”
TV Show: “The Bodyguard”
“I’ve been really enjoying ‘The Bodyguard.’ We sat on the couch and watched it and were riveted from episode one onward. I love that.”
Barry Jenkins (“If Beale Street Could Talk”)
Movie: “Roma”
“I’ve always known who Alfonso Cuarón is, anyone who went to film school in the last 20 years knows who he is. To see somebody who can make ‘Gravity’ on such a large scale, apply that same aesthetic to a very intimate story. And to a story that’s about his home country, his home life. That’s what cinema should be. He’s acquired all these tools making these massive films, and then he uses those same tools to tell another massive film, but it’s massive here [points to heart] and not on the moon or in outer space.”
Letitia Wright (“Black Panther”)
Movies: “If Beale Street Could Talk,” “The Hate U Give,” “Beautiful Boy”
“Those are the ones that stood out for me.”
Andrew Rannells (“Big Mouth,” “Black Monday”)
TV Show: “Homecoming”
“I loved that it was such a beautiful drama but also in a half hour format, which is something I had not seen before. I thought the cinematography was really beautiful and the whole Hitchcockian tone of it. It was also just exciting to see that much of Julia Roberts again. To get to watch her for five hours is really fun. And Bobby Cannavale is always amazing. I really loved that.”
Book: “My Year of Rest and Relaxation”
“It’s such a weird story, but so beautifully told. Because I lived in New York at that time, in 2000, she captures that era so beautifully. And it’s such a strange character, she’s just such a beautiful writer. ‘Eileen,’ her first book, is phenomenal as well. I’m a big, big fan of hers.”
Adam Pally (“Champaign ILL”)
TV Show: “American Vandal”
“I loved season one and I thought season two was great, I think those kids got it.”
Movie: “Black Panther”
“I’ve never quite been that invested in a superhero movie before, and I’ve been in a couple.”
Michelle Yeoh (“Crazy Rich Asians”)
TV Show: “Killing Eve”
“[Because of] Sandra Oh, and it’s so good, it’s so real. It doesn’t explain why an Asian woman is in that role, she just is.I thought that was very empowering.”
James Van Der Beek (“Pose”)
Favorite Movie: “Bohemian Rhapsody”
“I loved it! It was so much fun.”
TV Show: “Atlanta”
“It breaks boundaries. As a content creator, it’s really fun to have someone out there breaking barriers and telling stories in a half hour format that’s not three laughs a page, and the risks they’re taking storywise.
Guilty Pleasure: “Ultimate Beastmaster”
“It’s basically ‘American Ninja Warrior’ but international and on steroids. My kids love it.”
Marti Noxon (“Sharp Objects”)
Movie: “Vice”
“I plan for ‘Vice’ to be my favorite movie.”
Nina Jacobson (“Crazy Rich Asians,” “Ben is Back” Producer)
Movie: “The Rider”
“You can’t be as voracious with media as Brad [Simpson] and I are and have a favorite. I will give a shout out this year to ‘The Rider.’ That’s one I can’t stop thinking about.”
Richard E. Grant (“Can You Ever Forgive Me?”)
Movie: “The Favourite,” “Roma”
“I thought that ‘The Favourite’ was an extraordinary piece of work. The three female actors are astonishing and I feel “Roma” was the most amazing film and to see it through the eyes of a 22-year-old, who’s a real-life teaching assistant, and presented like a documentary. That was amazing as well. All female favorites this year.”
Tony Shalhoub (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”)
TV Show: “A French Village”
“It’s a WWII hour-long, drama. We just started watching it about a month ago and we’re so deeply obsessed. That’s number one on my list right now.”
Zachary Levi (“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”)
TV Show: “Patriot”
“I’m very much looking forward to ‘Patriot’ Season 2. I genuinely loved the first season. It’s like the movie ‘In Bruges,’ but as a series. ‘In Bruges’ was so weird and different. I’m not even sure that I liked the movie the first time that I saw it and then I watched it again, and I was like, ‘I really like this movie. It’s so different,’ and I applaud people trying to do something different — and then “Patriot” just took that to a whole new level. The writing and the performances and the direction are so great. I do appreciate a show that’s just 10 episodes and I can binge the hell out of it.”
Jake Johnson (“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”)
Movie: “Three Identical Strangers”
“It’s really dark, but I thought it was a really interesting movie.”
TV Show: “’Better Call Saul’
“I’m a Bob Odenkirk guy, so I’m still watching him…I can’t believe that he’s not winning every award that comes up.”
Kieran Culkin (“Succession”)
Movie: “Black Panther”
“I’m a huge fan of the MCU, and I think that movie and both ‘Infinity War,’ were incredible. I think it’s great that a movie like that can actually be acknowledged for what it is. Those movies have been overlooked for a long time. There’s a lot that Marvel has done that has actually been fantastic, and people put it in the category of ‘superhero movie’ instead of acknowledging what they’ve been doing for the past twenty movies. So it’s great to see that happening.”
Guilty Pleasure: WWE
“For the last 30 years, or so, I’ve been watching WWE. Monday Night Raw, Smackdown and then all the big events Royal Rumble, Wrestlemania. I’ve been to, I think, nine Wrestlemanias at this point. My wife unfortunately for her has been to about five or six of them with me. Poor thing, she puts up with it. That would be, I guess, my guilty pleasure but I just don’t care anymore. It’s just a real pleasure to watch wrestling and go to Wrestlemania.”
Rachel Bloom (“Crazy Ex-Girlfriend”)
TV Show: “Killing Eve”
“Oh, because it’s smart, and it’s dark, and it’s unexpected and the acting is so, so, so good.”
Movie: “Three Identical Strangers”
“It has movie-worthy twists and turns, yet it is nonfiction.”
Book: “21 Lessons for the 21st Century”
“Oh! Yuval Noah Harari’s new book, who wrote ‘Sapiens.’”
Kathy Griffin (“The President Show”)
Movie: “Crazy Rich Asians”
“Of the narrative movies, ‘Crazy Rich Asians.’ It was a rom-com with insight into a culture that I don’t know enough about. It was interesting weaving the story and making it relatable and interesting. The performances were so different and nothing was monolithic about it.”
TV Show: “90 Day Fiancé”
“It’s so very realistic. It’s great to marry someone you’ve known for two weeks in a foreign country. And it always works out so well when you both have children with separate baby mommas and baby daddies.”
Book: “Dear Madam President”
“[The author, Jennifer Palmieri] wasn’t Hillary’s chief of staff but she was very high up… It’s a great book that was positive about whoever the first female president will be: ‘This is what you’re going to be in for dear Madam President, but it’s going to be good, here’s what you need to do a learn.’ It was actually quite positive.”
Debra Messing (“Will & Grace”)
TV Show: “The Bodyguard”
“I’ll tell you the show that I most recently watched that I thought was spectacular: ‘Bodyguard.’ I loved it. I thought it was fantastic.”
John C. Reilly (“Stan & Ollie”)
Movie: “The Rider”
“I really enjoyed ‘The Rider,’ I thought that was a special accomplishment, using all those people that were not professional actors who were so believable and compelling. And having ridden a horse on “The Sisters Brothers,” it reminded me of how powerful that bond with an animal can be. I hope it can get recognized more this year.”
MJ Rodriguez (“Pose”)
TV Show: “American Horror Story Apocalypse”
“I’m glad that the witches are back. And I’m glad that, I call him my Uncle, Billy Porter is on the show and he’s turning it out. And I’m not just saying that because he’s on the show, it’s a really, really good show.”
Movie: “Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald”
“Because I’m a huge Harry Potter fan. I follow all of the books, and I love all the actors who are a part of it.”
Mara Wilson (“Big Hero 6: The Series”)
Movie: “The Favourite”
“I have loved Olivia Colman for years, I have been in love with her. She’s already married to a man, but I’ve told my friends if Olivia Colman ever shows up at my door I will run away with her.”
TV Show: “Killing Eve”
“That was a great show and I loved Jodie Comer in ‘My Mad Fat Diary,’ so it was cool to see her in this as well.”
Guilty Pleasure: Nothing
“I try not to be too guilty about my pleasures. I try to just embrace them openly.”
Henry Winkler (“Barry”)
Movie: “A Star is Born,” “BlacKkKlansman”
“I like Brad and I like Lady Gaga, so I would have to go with ‘A Star Is Born,” but the ‘Klansma’ [as well].”
Steven Canals (“Pose”)
Guilty Pleasure: “The Real Housewives”
“Pretty much anything Bravo, especially the housewives… I’m loving the OC cast this season I’m loving that Vicki and Tamra and Shannon are all friends again.”
Dan Levy (“Schitt’s Creek”)
Movie: “A Star Is Born”
“It was such a big, shiny wonderful movie. And I just ate it up.”
TV Show: “The Americans,” “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”
“I thought the performances [on The Americans] were incredible. It was just a brilliant show. I just got into Maisel and that is such a special show.”
Gia Gunn (“Ru Paul’s Drag Race”)
Movie: “A Star is Born”
“Not only because my sisters Willam and Shangela were in there, but also because they did a really great job in representing all walks of life. I love, of course, that they did include drag culture, but I saw myself in that movie and it actually gave me a lot of inspiration.”
TV Show: “Pose”
“‘Pose’ is a show that we’ve needed for such a long time. It’s really fulfilling and positive to see trans men and women in the public eye finally able to be taken seriously.
Guilty Pleasure: “Ru Paul’s Drag Race”
“‘Drag Race’ obviously is where I started but I’m definitely on my way to coming into my own. I’m forever thankful for the program, I think it’s a super entertaining show.”
Nico Santos (“Crazy Rich Asians”)
Movie: “Crazy Rich Asians”
“It’s an obvious choice for me but I’m so proud to be a part of that movie. It’s so weird to be part of a project that’s going to be remembered forever. It’s a cultural milestone.”
TV Show: “Succession”
“It’s dark, it’s dramatic and it’s funny.”
Guilty Pleasure: “Hoarders”
“Especially because I just moved yesterday, so I was going through all my stuff and I said, ‘I need to watch an episode of Hoarders so I don’t become one.’”
Ryan Jamaal Swain (“Pose”)
Movie: “Black Panther”
“First of all my, fellow Howard alum Chadwick Boseman did his thing and also it’s a moment we finally, young youth of color, really got to see themselves represented in an immaculate way. It’s so amazing.”
TV Show: “The Assassination of Gianni Versace”
“The way the cinematography, the way the story kind of unfolded and the acting and everybody in the cast was amazing.”
Book: “I Can’t Date Jesus”
“It’s a memoir basically growing up queer in the South and black and him just doing his thing.”
Lauren Ash (“Superstore”)
Movie: “Crazy Rich Asians”
“It’s been a long time since we’ve seen a big budget blockbuster rom-com. To see one now that also is celebrating an amazing world that we’ve never seen in film before, I mean, what more do you want?”
TV Show/Guilty Pleasure: “90 Day Fiancé”
“‘90 days’ is the best season of reality television ever made. Come at me. It really is compelling.”
Jason George (“Station 19”)
Movie: “BlacKkKlansman”
“It was one of the [movies] that hit me and resonated in a powerful way. I went to school at University of Virginia, that footage at the end in Charlottesville, for me, it immediately gave me a visceral reaction. It brought some tears because that’s home.”
Mark Ronson (“Shallow” co-writer, “A Star Is Born”)
Movie: “Ben Is Back”
“I was surprised. I didn’t know what to think; I went in at the Toronto Film Festival with my girlfriend, because she had a ticket. I had no expectations, and that haunted me.”
Mena Massoud (“Aladdin”)
Movie: “A Star Is Born”
“Bradley Cooper just really impressed me with being able to star and direct Lady Gaga in it. He pulled it all off. It’s admirable, for any actor who’s even thinking about directing, it’s amazing.”
TV Show: “Killing Eve,” “Marvelous Mrs. Maisel”
“I’ve been a fan of ‘Marvelous Mrs. Maisel’ before everybody got on the bandwagon, so I was there first. I love that show. And ‘Killing Eve’ I finished it in two days.”
Stephan James (“If Beale Street Could Talk,” “Homecoming”)
Movie: “Black Panther”
“Of course, how could you not love ‘Black Panther?’ It just felt larger than life, it felt like I was seeing myself represented in a way that I’d never seen myself represented. What a cool story, coming out of the mind of a Ryan Coogler, it was something I really, really enjoyed.”
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